


Never Been Kissed

by mahbecks



Series: Becks' Gladnis Week 2017 [4]
Category: Final Fantasy XV
Genre: Day 3, Explicit Language, Fluff, Getting Together, Gladnis Week, Humor, Kissing, M/M, Making Out, Romance, brotherhood era
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-12-06
Updated: 2017-12-06
Packaged: 2019-02-11 12:06:51
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,660
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12934932
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/mahbecks/pseuds/mahbecks
Summary: At sixteen years old, Ignis has never been kissed.It’s hardly unusual - why it’s probably commonplace. But Ignis has always hated being inexperienced at anything, and so he comes up with a plan to get his first kiss: he’ll ask Gladio, his much more experienced friend, to help him out.The only problem is, Gladio doesn’t have any experience either.*A story for Gladnis Week, Day Three - Brotherhood Era!





	Never Been Kissed

Ignis Scientia had never been kissed.

It wasn’t a problem, really - he was only sixteen. There would be plenty of time for him to practice such things later. Besides, with the prince entering high school and moving into his own apartment, it was important that Ignis be there for him. He didn’t have any time to devote to dating; much more important things demanded his attention.

And yet…

There was nothing Ignis hated more than being inadequate. It hardly mattered whether the task was trivial or important. He loathed not knowing how to do things the right way, going to extreme lengths to learn proper techniques, forms, and application. That he had no idea how to go about kissing someone was thus greatly aggravating to him, all the more so because this wasn’t something he could teach himself using a book.

Oh, there were certainly clinical manuals on the subject of physical romance, and a whole section in the library filled with young adult novels that might give him some helpful pointers. But kissing, as his peers in school had told him, was something you had to do to really understand. It wasn’t something anyone was really naturally good at - perfection of the art required practice, experience, and not a little bit of hard work.

It was a bit like playing a sport, one classmate of his had said, comparing kissing to an athletic competition.

 _“It’s like football, yeah?”_ he’d explained. _“You got your guidebooks, and you can go watch your favorite players. You can watch the classic games on TV, and you can listen to all the commentators during the breaks. But that’s not gonna help you score a goal. It’s not gonna make you any better with the ball.”_

Ignis couldn’t argue with that, not when it made so much sense to him. He’d not been able to cook a roast properly without first learning how one should taste, after all. It made sense that in order to be able to _give_ a really good kiss, one had to first _get_ a really good kiss.

And therein lay the problem.

How did he get experience without going through the rigamarole of awkward, teenage dating?

It was more than a little frustrating, but as the school year progressed, he was determined to find a solution to the problem. His first idea was to attempt to score an invite to a classmate’s party, where he might hope to land himself in a situation where kissing might be appropriate. There were certain games, he’d been told, where people were dared to kiss one another - sometimes, right there in the middle of the room, and sometimes, locked in a closet with another random person at the behest of the rest of the group.

Neither sounded particularly pleasing to Ignis, who would have preferred both privacy and the option of selecting his partner. But beggars couldn’t be choosers, and all that, and he supposed that that would work if it came to it.

Unfortunately, every party he managed to get himself invited to that fall happened to be upon a night when he had other obligations - to Noctis, to the King, to his training, to his homework... By mid-October, he’d given up on that route altogether. His schedule was simply too busy. Reluctant, he decided to go back to square one and try to find some other way to get himself kissed.

Mid-December, it hit him.

Why didn’t he just _ask_ someone to kiss him?

It wasn’t completely out of the question. He might not have a lot of experience, but he knew what he looked like. He could be charming when he wanted. Surely, if he asked the right person, they’d agree?

But then who was the right person?

It had to be another boy, he quickly decided, and not a girl. For one thing, he knew he was more attracted to men than he was to women. For another, most of his friends were male, and he’d come to the conclusion that it would be easier to approach a friend with this sort of request than a total stranger. Surely one of them would help him out, yes?

There were perhaps three people he felt comfortable enough to ask.

The first was his lab partner, Marcus. They’d known each other for some time, always getting on well. He was also passingly attractive, fit and slim with curling black hair and big, brown eyes. Perhaps he would be amenable?

If not, then maybe, Julius, the boy with whom he often studied during his free period. Julius was quiet, a bit shy too, but Ignis knew he’d had boyfriends before. The school’s gossip mills had assured him of that. And it was easy to see why he’d have been popular with boys and girls alike, with his beautiful hazel eyes and sweet, gentle smile. Yes, he was certainly an option.

The last was, of course, Gladiolus Amicitia. If there was a list of people Ignis thought might be willing to help him learn how to kiss, surely his oldest, closest friend had to be on it. Gladio was the type to help anyone with anything, thinking nothing of it, and if the rumors were to be believed, he was very, _very_ good at kissing.

Among other things.

So, then. Which of these three options did he choose to pursue?

In his heart, Ignis knew which friend he wanted to approach first. Marcus and Julius were kind, and he enjoyed their company greatly. But the bond he had with Gladio was something else entirely, something far deeper and more intimate than any friendship he’d forged with his peers. It didn’t hurt that Gladio was the most attractive of the lot of them, tall and broad and tanned, with an easy smile and surprisingly soft, pretty eyes.

No, not just pretty - beautiful eyes.

Beautiful eyes that he didn’t _think_ wouldn’t turn hard and angry the moment he suggested what he planned on suggesting. Eyes that would be understanding, even if Gladio turned him down. He wasn’t sure he could say as much for Marcus or Julius, whom he knew not even half as well.

It had to be Gladio.

And thus, a plan was born.

He waited until they were finished with exams for the semester, figuring that would be easier on the both of them, and then invited Gladio over on a Friday night, asking if he wanted to watch a new movie Ignis had recently bought. To his relief, Gladio easily accepted, even offering to bring over some pizza and soda for dinner.

“To celebrate,” he’d said. “For another semester of straight A’s for you, all A’s and a B for me, and for never having to take fuckin’ _calculus_ ever again.”

Ignis has laughed and agreed with this proposition - and not simply because of their shared hatred for vectors. Dinner might calm his nerves some, put him at ease, make it seem like nothing out of the ordinary was about to happen.

When the time came, however, he found it did nothing of the sort. The movie’s opening credits came and went, and Ignis found he was unable to so much as move from where he’d perched on the edge of his couch, fingers tapping nervously at his knee. He’d barely been able to manage more than a slice, and the thought of bubbly, overly sweet soda made him want to throw up.

Gladio could tell he was nervous. He kept looking to the side, raising an eyebrow, half-asking if Ignis was alright before turning back to the television, shaking his head. Ignis was grateful for that, at least. He hadn’t quite worked out how he would phrase his request, let alone what to say to that sort of inquiry.

He still hadn’t decided what to do when the movie ended. He tensed as soon as the credits began to roll, thinking quick to come up with something, anything, before Gladio could leave.

“You okay, Iggy?”

He blinked, turning to the side, startled to find Gladio’s concerned face so close to his own. When had he sat up? When last Ignis had looked, he’d been slouched down into the cushions -

“Iggy?”

“I’m fine,” he said, shaking his head as if to clear it.

“You sure? Looks like you got something on your mind.”

_Yes - you. Your lips, on mine._

Pushing that thought aside, he braced himself, taking a deep breath. It was now or never.

“I - well, there was something I wanted to ask.”

“Shoot.”

Ignis swallowed, unable to resist looking down at Gladio’s lips. They were full and pink, slightly parted, a glimpse of white teeth just beyond. What would they feel like, Ignis wondered? What would they taste like?

A thrill shot through him at the thought, and he irritably pushed it away. This was to be a _learning_ experience, he chided himself. This wasn’t - it didn’t mean anything more than that. Even if, over the last few weeks careful planning, he’d come to realize that his feelings for Gladio extended perhaps a little beyond mere friendship.

Just a little. He’d not thought on it too hard, not wanting the accompanying swirl of confusing emotions that tended to elicit.

“Will you…”

“Yeah?”

“Will you kiss me?” The words left his mouth in a rush, like water spilling from a dam, and Gladio blinked, not quite comprehending.

“I… come again?”

Ignis repeated the question, slower this time.

“Oh. Oh, shit.” Gladio hesitated, reaching a hand up to scratch at his hair, carefully spiked up in the front and shaved short at the sides. “I, uh… hell, Iggy, why?”

“I’ve… never been kissed,” Ignis admitted, face hot.

“...uh-huh.”

“And I don’t like that. I don’t want to seem… I wondered what it was like,” he said, changing the end of his sentence. “But I don’t have time to go out on a lot of dates. So I thought… I had thought, with your experience, you might be able to… show me? As a friend?”

A little part of him laughed and told him that friends didn’t exactly go around asking their friends to kiss them.

Ignis ignored it.

Gladio was frowning, shock replaced with confusion. “Wait, what d’you mean?” he asked. “‘My experience’? What experience?”

Ignis scowled, thinking Gladio was playing dumb. “Oh, come now, Gladio, you have to have heard what people say about you,” he retorted. “It’s not exactly a secret.”

“Well, yeah, people say a lotta shit, but that doesn’t make it _true_ ,” Gladio shot back.

Ignis froze.

“If you don’t have time for kissing, why the hell do you think I would?”

He hadn’t thought of that. Astrals, he hadn’t even considered - but it made sense, yes? Gladio had his own responsibilities to attend to, and he took almost as many advanced placement courses as Ignis did. His workload was likely only a little lighter.

But then he never seemed stressed, or fatigued, and he never did anything about quelling the rumors surrounding him, and -

No. This wasn’t something he could pin on Gladio.

He had erred. He hadn’t known, or asked, the truth.

He’d only assumed his friend would have been kissed by now.

“You mean you haven’t…?”

“No,” Gladio said, crossing his arms over his chest and leaning back into the side of the couch. he was embarrassed, Ignis guessed, not quite meeting Ignis’ eyes, and Ignis suddenly felt horribly guilty. “I haven’t.”

“A-ah.”

He shifted, wanting nothing more than to stand up and retreat into his bedroom, locking the door behind him. But Gladio seemed just as uncomfortable as he was, and it was completely his fault, and to run and hide would have been incredibly rude, and -

Dammit.

What did he do now?

“I just - I let people say what they want.” Gladio’s voice was quiet, soft. “I know what people think of me. No one’d believe me if they knew the truth. They all think I’m a player.”

“You… do flirt with everyone.”

Gladio rolled his eyes. “Gee, thanks,” he said.

“Sorry.”

“No, it’s… well, you ain’t wrong. But I’m like you, Iggy. Yeah, I flirt a lot, and I like it, but I gotta focus on school, and gettin’ into the Crownsguard, and trainin’ Noct. I don’t have time to actually date anyone.”

“I shouldn’t have assumed otherwise.”

“No, I don’t - I’m not -“ Gladio broke off, huffing out a frustrated breath. “I get it, Iggy. I do. I’m not mad or anything. Just a misunderstanding, yeah?”

“Still, I never even thought to ask-“

“Iggy. Really. It’s not a big deal.”

Ignis pursed his lips, uncertain. Somehow, it didn’t seem that easy.

“And if you… if you still wanted to…”

Ignis looked up, surprised. Now it was Gladio’s turn to flush, though it was hardly as noticeable on his darker skin, and there was an uncertain note to his voice. Did he… was he suggesting what Ignis thought he was suggesting?

“Well, maybe we could help each other out,” he finished in a rush. “Y’know - with the whole kissing thing.”

“Are you certain?”

Gladio met his eyes then, and something Ignis saw there made him go hot all over, his mouth suddenly and unexpectedly dry.

“If you are.”

“I - I’d like that.” He hesitated. “Would you?”

“Yeah. Let’s do it.”

Neither of them moved.

A moment later, and they both laughed, easing the tension somewhat. “Good start,” Gladio said playfully.

“I think we’ll have to get closer,” Ignis said.

“Yeah.” Gladio sat up straight again, shuffling forward on the couch. “Here, face me.”

“Alright.”

“And move a little closer. There, I think that’s good.”

Their knees were touching now, warm and knobby through the fabric of their pants. At this angle, their faces were at the same height. That was good, yes? They would only have to lean forward, just a bit, and then they’d be touching. No, they’d be kissing.

Gods, his pulse was racing.

“So, we just-“

“Yes.”

“I’ll put my hand here-“

“Alright.”

“-and you turn this way, and-”

It was the gentlest, softest touch imaginable.

Ignis leaned in, inhaling sharply at that first, sudden contact, that first brush of Gladio’s lips against his, instinctively pressing back against Gladio. The hand at his arm tightened, fingers digging into his shirt, and Ignis felt his eyes flutter closed when Gladio pushed a little harder, lips parting. Ignis thought it best he do the same, opening his mouth as he turned his head to side as Gladio had said, so their noses wouldn’t collide-

“Ow, fuck!”

Ignis jerked back, holding his mouth, surprised at how much it had hurt when their teeth had clicked together.

“I’m sorry,” he said immediately, holding a hand to his mouth.

“No, it’s-” Gladio surprised him with a laugh. “It’s okay. Had to mess something up, right?”

“We should try again,” Ignis suggested, before he’d really thought about it. But Gladio certainly didn’t seem to think twice about it, nodding eagerly, and when he leaned back in, connecting their mouths once more, he quickly forgot to feel sheepish.

The second time was immeasurably better. It was just as warm and soft as the first kiss, the feel of Gladio’s lips on him just as good. They moved together, not against each other, slowly getting acquainted with the feel and taste of one another, and when they finally drew apart, several minutes later, they were both breathing heavy.

“That was…” Ignis began, unable to finish the sentence.

“Good, yeah?” Gladio supplied.

Ignis nodded. “Very.”

Gladio moved one of his hands, setting it on Ignis’ back and pulling him closer. “C’mere, then,” he said. “I wanna try something.”

“Something” included poking at Ignis’ lips with his tongue, startling a gasp out of Ignis, and then plunging inside, deepening the kiss. Unbidden, Ignis inhaled sharply and pushed forward, inviting Gladio in, his arms coming up to wrap around Gladio’s neck. He wanted closer, he wanted to feel Gladio next to him, his muscles, his skin, his mouth. His blood was like fire in his veins, a heat he’d only ever experienced on his own settling deep in pit of his stomach. Was it… mutual? Was Gladio just as affected as he was? He shifted, half moving into Gladio’s lap, accidentally biting down on Gladio’s lip, and to his utmost surprise, it tore a deep groan from his friend’s chest.

Ignis pulled back, startled.

Gladio stared at him for a moment, amber eyes wide, his pupils huge.

Ignis had barely enough time to realize what that signified before he was being pushed backwards, down into the couch, Gladio’s weight settling atop him, hips and mouths aligned, arms on either side of his head.

Vaguely, somewhere in the back of his mind, Ignis realized that this was people his own age called “making out”. Yes, that was what they called this, this fervent, desperate sort of kissing, accompanied by stray, questing fingers and heady, gasping breaths. But how had they gotten here? This was supposed to be a learning experience, a teachable moment, not… whatever this was quickly becoming. He didn’t have a word for it.

And when Gladio broke away, his mouth drifting lower and latching onto Ignis’ neck, Ignis decided he didn’t care.

Instead, he turned his head to the side, giving Gladio better access to his throat. Gladio made another noise at that, a deeper, rumbling sound that had Ignis’ stomach clenching, heat flooding him, something that could only be called want coursing through him-

The television suddenly blared to life, the sound of fireworks filling the air, and the both of them stilled, heads whipping towards the noise, perturbed.

“The remote,” Ignis said, reaching up and over his head. “We must’ve-”

“I got it,” Gladio said, finding the device Ignis’ hands couldn’t. “Here, I’ll turn it off.”

It took only a moment, the apartment silent once more, and yet the spell had been broken. Ignis sat up, Gladio coming with him, adjusting clothing gone askew and mussed hair.

Across from him, Gladio did the same. Still, he couldn’t quite hide the brightness in his eyes. Seeing it made Ignis want to kiss him again.

“So… that was…”

“Unexpected?”

Gladio chuckled. “Yeah. You could say that.” He paused, eyeing Ignis. “You like it?”

Shyly, Ignis nodded, not quite trusting himself to speak just yet.

“Y’know… we could do it again sometime.”

Ignis’ mouth worked furiously as he tried to come up with something, anything to say. “You mean, date?” he asked finally, hating how high and small his voice sounded. “The two of us?”

“I meant kissing,” Gladio said, smiling. “But… I’m not opposed to that, either.”

It seemed too good to be true.

“I like you, Iggy. Always have. And this… I dunno ‘bout you, but I liked this. A lot. No reason we can’t give dating a shot.”

“I thought we had decided we didn’t have time for that,” Ignis said, not quite daring to hope that Gladio might want this as much as he suddenly found he did. “We said-”

“I know what we said,” Gladio interjected. “But that was with other people, not us.” He paused, reaching out and straightening Ignis’ glasses, crooked on the bridge of his nose. “We couldn’t date anyone else. They wouldn’t get it. The time commitment, protectin’ Noct, servin’ the King… but if we were datin’ each other… it could work, Iggy.”

“Is that…” Ignis darted his tongue out, wetting his lips. “Do you want that?”

Gladio’s eyes were glued to his mouth, having followed the path of his tongue. He looked up when Ignis finishing speaking. “Yeah. I think so. Do you want to?”

Ignis’ voice was barely above a whisper. “Yes.”

Gladio’s answering smile could have lit the night. He leaned in, kissing Ignis once again, his lips soft and lingering, one hand curling around Ignis’ neck. It was nice, unrushed, just sweet and gentle.

As a first kiss should be, he mused.

But then again, perhaps not. Perhaps a first kiss was supposed to be awkward and fumbling, hands in all the wrong places, teeth knocking together. Maybe it was only by realizing what was bad that you learned to appreciate what was good. After all, if the first kiss had been perfect, they might not have had a second.

Or a third.

Or a fourth.

Or a -

“Iggy?”

“Mmm?”

“Thanks.”

“For what?”

Gladio grinned, giving him a saucy wink. “For the experience,” he said.

Startled, Ignis laughed. “Oh? You think you know what you’re doing now, do you?”

“You tell me,” he said, shuffling closer, giving Ignis a kiss that was decidedly less sweet, one that left him breathless and dazed, his skin feeling two sizes too small. He was grinning as he pulled away, pleased with himself. “So? How was I?”

Ignis didn’t reply.

Instead, he yanked Gladio’s head down and kissed him again, smiling at the happy laugh he let out, not letting go until he felt his lungs were fit to burst. Gladio withdrew first, pressing his forehead against Ignis’, eyes still fever bright, lips pulled back in a wide, delighted smile.

“Gettin’ good at that, Iggy,” he panted.

“I’m a quick learner,” Ignis retorted.

Gladio laughed again, wrapping an arm around Ignis’ waist. “Yeah, you are.” He nuzzled in close, a little hesitant, as if he feared Ignis might push him away. A ridiculous notion, really - that was precisely where Ignis wanted him. “So, hey - it’s gettin’ late. Want me to go?”

Ignis hesitated. He had to get up early in the morning, and then he had a long day of ferrying Noct around the capital to attend to. He could use every bit of sleep he could get. But the thought of staying here, warm and happy in Gladio’s arms, was just as appealing.

Perhaps, this one time, he could make an exception?

“Stay,” he murmured, hand curling in Gladio’s shirt. “Please?”

Gladio smiled, leaning in to kiss him again. “‘Kay.” 

 

**Author's Note:**

> Thanks for reading! :) 
> 
> As always, feedback is very much appreciated, if you’d care to leave some :)


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